Converting direct speech to indirect (reported) speech involves several grammatical changes, including tense shifts, pronoun changes, and often a change in the reporting verb, especially for exclamatory sentences. The original sentence, "What a beautiful place!" is an exclamation, expressing strong emotion.
The correct indirect speech is He exclaimed that it was a very beautiful place. When reporting an exclamation, the reporting verb 'said' is typically replaced with a more appropriate verb like 'exclaimed,' 'shouted,' or 'cried out,' which better conveys the speaker's emotion. The present tense 'is' (implied in 'What a beautiful place it is!') must be backshifted to the past tense 'was' because the reporting verb 'exclaimed' is in the past tense. Additionally, the exclamatory structure is converted into a declarative statement, often using 'that' and adding an intensifier like 'very' to reflect the original sentiment.
- He said it is a beautiful place is incorrect because 'said' does not capture the exclamatory nature, and the tense 'is' is not backshifted to 'was'.
- He exclaimed what a beautiful place is incorrect because it retains the direct speech structure of the exclamation rather than converting it into a proper reported statement.
- He said that place is beautiful is incorrect because 'said' doesn't convey the exclamation, and the tense 'is' is not backshifted.